Sacramento State’s Government Department is now called the Department of Political Science, which aligns it with similar university programs around the country.

“We thought the name would better represent what we do – and avoid confusion for students,” says professor and department chair Jim Cox. “We have a lot of anecdotal evidence that many students don’t know that Government and Political Science are the same thing.”

For instance, Political Science majors transferring to Sac State have worried that their credits might not count here.

“We also heard stories from alumni that some employers were confused about the Government degree,” says Cox. “The most common name is Political Science, and it is the name used by our professional organization, the American Political Science Association.” – Dixie Reid